As seen in the link Metallica has made their own label to release their upcoming records themselves. I think this might open doors for them, in doing what they really want, and not being forced by a record label to make what is radio-friendly. It may also be a bad thing as the "crap-filter" is gone, so a lot of bad material may leak through.

I doubt that the record label's really had all that much of a say in how commercial Metallica's music is. Metallica could release an album consisting of the grunts that Lars makes when he shits, and it would top the charts and go multiplatinum because its Metallica, the label doesn't need to bother to make sure its a commercially friendly album. What I'm more interested in is the possibility of re-releases of some of their 80's albums with unreleased songs on them.

Metallica can release whatever the fuck they want, as they have proven more than once. The band has the funding and business personnel to do this, and with the decline in significance of labels' extensive distribution and promotion networks, it's probably a good business plan for them.

I'd like to see them use their label to promote other metal too, but based on the festival they put together, they don't have much taste in music these days.

Ever since "The Black Album" sold a billion copies, I'm pretty sure Metallica had all the freedom in the world to write whatever they wanted. Otherwise, why didn't the label force them to make s/t part 2? I don't think Metallica's long stream of garbage had anything to do with labels telling them what to do, but more with the band's desire to experiment and/or general dysfunction.

I don't really care about Metallica's recent output but I'm still applauding this. It's always great news whenever an artist frees himself from those motherfuckers. Granted, the real challenge is for smaller acts to do so. That's a lot more difficult. But it's good to see any artist doing this.

As for how it will affect subsequent records: my guess is, not a whole lot. Some labels have a lot of leverage on the creative process of certain artists, others, not so much. The label will still annoy you every now and then with their opinion, so that's one less annoyance for Metallica.

But it does affect the pacing of releases (reissues and new ones) quite often. Record companies manage rosters. When they release stuff, it's based on what's best for the label, not the individual artist. They might, for instance, push back the release of your album so that it doesn't compete with another one of their artist or fills a low activity spot on their schedule. They also tend to push for counter-intuitive "best of" and "greatest hits" that are often frustrating for fans as they keep coming out with weird song selections.

If you're in control, you only have your own band and your fans to think about. Whether you do so or not, is an entirely different thing but at least, you're in the driver seat.

Also, I agree with the other poster who said "Tallica" is the weakest, most absurd nickname ever. Sounds like "tards" to me.

_________________

mjollnir wrote:

Noble Beast's debut album is way beyond MOST of what Priest did in the 80s.

They should remix it. The mastering should not be made any louder. Perhaps some equalization during the mastering stage should be done to better accommodate the bass. The more important question is : Do they own the rights ?

_________________"Welcome to the sane asylum, you'll never leave if you keep trying" - Blind Illusion.

This is huge for Metallica. They now own the rights to all their master recordings and albums. Free of any commercial pressures from labels, they can do whatever the fuck they want.

I also agree with whoever said they should use it to promote other artists. One thing you can not deny about Metallica, regardless your thoughts on the bands music, is that they have always looked out for other bands, and been open about their influences, and even bands they just like. It'd be nice of them to continue that trend.

I think if they wanted to remix AJFA they would have by now. Still, if they do, that'd be great. I still think Jason's bass being non-existant on that album is a reaction to how loud it is on Doomsday for the Reciever and they thought it'd be a fun way to fuck with him.

Certainly a sign of the times for the music bizz. Kamleot, Angra and many others have gone this route in the past few years.

You know what's the main difference between those two bands and Metallica? The fact that, despite their notable stylistic changes over the past few years, they still make good music, and Angra in particular is at their zenith with records such as Aurora Consurgens and Aqua (also, fuck André Matos).

Now, about the news at hand; as said by others before me, this won't really bring any important differences in Metallica's output, I'm sure. They write shitty music not because they're forced to, but because they enjoy it. And yeah, I'm all for experimenting with your sound, but only as long as you make it work.

_________________

Nochielo wrote:

Crick wrote:

Years from now, no one will remember Gandhi. They will speak only of Fenriz.

Being free from any expectations from a label as far as their next creative output is concerned is negligible when you keep in mind just how much most of the band has declined in terms of their performance skills and songwriting capabilities. This will most likely just be a vehicle to sell new merch to the fans with a handful of bands later on, and perhaps one more studio album in a couple of years as I honestly think that's all they have left in them.

As I read in a post above, this is definitely a smart move on their part. It'll be interesting to see if they sign other bands to the label, or just use it to put out their own stuff - is it just me, or have they been releasing a LOT of live DVDs in the last few years? In any case, I can only imagine the astronomical price they had to pay for their back catalogue. They're one of the last truly-massive rock bands; the record company probably just lost billions in future sales and I bet whoever owned their music up until now made it fucking hurt to get it.

Oh and yeah a MASSIVE +1 to the "stop calling yourselves 'tallica" comment.

Certainly a sign of the times for the music bizz. Kamleot, Angra and many others have gone this route in the past few years.

You know what's the main difference between those two bands and Metallica? The fact that, despite their notable stylistic changes over the past few years, they still make good music, and Angra in particular is at their zenith with records such as Aurora Consurgens and Aqua (also, fuck André Matos).

My post had nothing to do with comparing the quality musical output, in case you thought that was my point

Some of you guys really think Metallica released one shitty album after another because the bad, bad record labels forced them to do so? Metallica came up with one shitty album after another because, these days, shitty music just sells. There's no hope of Metallica releasing something worthwhile ever again. Deal with it, you fantasts.

Last edited by HouseAnxiety on Sat Dec 01, 2012 3:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Some of you guys really think Metallica released one shitty album after another because the bad, bad record labels forced them to do so? Metallica came up with one shitty album after another because, these days, shitty music just sells. There's no hope of Metallica releasing something worthwhile ever again. Deal with it, you fantasts.

Their generally regarded "shitty" albums have combined gone 10x Platinum in the US, with Lulu not being certified at all. The first four are a combined 22x platinum and Death Magnetic, whether you like it or not, was an intentional throwback to those first few albums, and stands at double platinum. The Black Album is 15x platinum, so place that in whichever category you please (I personally consider it one of their good ones, if a completely different style). This is not including their 15x platinum live album released shortly after the Black Album nor their other well known live albums or compilations.

I cannot understand why anyone would think of The Black Album as being shitty outside of the annoying "THEY SLOWED DOWN AND SIMPLIFIED STUFF! THOSE SELL OUT CUNTS!" mindset. The music on that album is for the most part really fucking good, and it has one of the best production sounds of any album released before or after it.

The thing is that Master of Puppets did sell in the 80s. Thing is that, these days, polished pop rock sells better. And I do consider the Black Album one of their bad ones because I just don't like it.

I cannot understand why anyone would think of The Black Album as being shitty outside of the annoying "THEY SLOWED DOWN AND SIMPLIFIED STUFF! THOSE SELL OUT CUNTS!" mindset. The music on that album is for the most part really fucking good, and it has one of the best production sounds of any album released before or after it.

heavily agreed - the production of that one album was the best yet in the history of music, and is unmatched since. The songs are all ridiculously well crafted and the only one I skip when I listen to the album is the ballad. It gets trashed in metal circles, but in truth it's a near-perfect album. I can understand shit-talking the two after it - they had a bit of filler between them - but the self-titled deserves its place as one of those albums that will survive into the next hundred years, imo.

The thing is that Master of Puppets did sell in the 80s. Thing is that, these days, polished pop rock sells better. And I do consider the Black Album one of their bad ones because I just don't like it.

One thing a lot of people don't understand is that they didn't sell buttloads of albums in the early 80s. It's not like Megaforce was the past equivalent to Roadrunner now, those early albums sold more and more as time went on and they continue to sell even today. It's not like everybody with a mullet went apeshit over Kill 'em All back in '83.

And fair enough, not everybody has to like the same music I do, but even counting The Black Album against the general "good" stuff, you see that your argument is hyperbolic and silly, right?

I do wonder if James and Lars will reach a point where they would be interested in pushing some more underground thrash/speed type bands. James has commented on listening to the fuck out of Hirax's Barrage of Noise and he also enjoys Evil Army. Maybe possibly? James has been wearing his old metal vest with his NWOBHM patches, or maybe he shops at the same spots Lil Wayne goes

Considering that my CD copies of Ride the Lightning, Master of Puppets and ...And Justice for All are scratched and skip, I really hope they do remasters for the first two and a remix for the latter. I would be a first day buyer!

Does anybody genuinely think those first few albums need remastering? Everybody was rightfully up in a tizzy when Megadeth did it. They sound fine, only Justice really needs any work done due to the obvious bass problem.